Stroke-regulator for windmills.



N0. 650,76l. "Patented May 29, I900.

E. R. NICHOLS.

STROKE REGULATOR FOB WiNDMILLS.

(Applicatiop filed Jan. 3, 1898.)

3 Sheets-Sheet I.

(No Model.)

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No. 650,76l. Patented May 29, I900.

E. R. NICHOLS.

STROKE-REGULATOR FOB WINDMILLS.

(Application-filed Jan. 3, 1898.)

(No Model.)

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ATTORNEYS No. 650,76l. rammed May 29, I900. E. n. NICHOLS.

STROKE REGULATOR FOR WINDIMLLS.

(Application filed. Jan. 8, 1898.) (No Model.) 3 SheetsSheet 3.

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STROKE-REGULATOR FOR WINDMILLS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 650,761, dated May 29,1900.

Application filed January 3, 1898. Serial No. 665,366. (N model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

' 'i. e., it may be lengthened or shortened to Be it known that I,ERNEST R. NICHOLS, a citizen of the United States, and a resident ofManhattan, in the county of Riley and State of Kansas, have invented anImprovement in Power Apparatus for Wind-Wheels, &c., of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention'has for its object to regulate the action of a wind-wheelby varying the length of stroke according to the velocity of thewind-that is to say, so that the stroke increases with the velocity, andvice versa. To effect this result, I employ a lever whose stroke islengthened or shortened automatically, according as the force of wind isgreater or less. The leveris in the form of an isosceles triangle oneside of which is variablevary the length ofstroke.

The details of construction, arrangement, and operation are ashereinafter set forth.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a sectional front view on line1 1 of Fig. 3, showing my invention as used in connection with awind-wheel and illustrating the triangularlever expanded, as when ashort stroke of the pump is being made. Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig.1, save that thetriangular lever is contracted and the pump-strokethereby lengthened. Fig. 3 is a side View of a portion of awind-wheelembodyin g my invention. Fig. 4 is a plan view.

The stationary frame A and the wind-wheel proper, B, Fig. 3, may haveany suitable construction. Said wheel is mounted vertically on a shorthorizontal shaft 0, which is operatively connected by pinion E,gear-wheel D, and crank-pin R with the rod S.

The pump-rod Gis connected at 1 with one angle of the triangular lever.The crank-pin It is connected with said lever at 3 by means of a rod S.The lever is composed of the three bars-I J K, two of whichJ and K-arerigidly connected, while I and J are pivoted together at their ends. Thesaid lever has a fixed fulcrum at 2 on the horizontal arm a of thewind-wheel frame A. Thus the lever oscillates vertically on the center 2and the outer end of the lower bar J is adjusted toward or from suchpoint to contract or expand the lever and change the stroke of the pump.The bar I is, in effect, the weight-arm, and

- correspondingly, as in Fig. 2.

the bar K the variable-power arm, of the lever. This lever is expandedin Fig. 1 and contracted in Fig. 2. In the first case the stroke of thepump-rod Gris short and in the second it is longer, corresponding to theless or greater force of the wind. The lever is antomaticallyadjusted-*that is, expanded or contracted--through the medium of a vaneL. NVhen the force of the wind is great, the vane L is thrown back, andthereby pulls on a cord or rope M, which passes over a segment N,attached to the vane L, thence over fixed pulleys O O to the lower outerangle 3 of the triangular lever, and thereby draws or lifts bars .Ttoward the weight-arm I. (See Fig. 2.) When the force of the windrelaxes, the vane L rises to its former position, and

the tension on rope M being thereby lessened the lever I J K expands, asbefore, Fig. 1, and the pump-rod stroke is again shortened.

This expansion is attained in part by gravity,

but positively by means of a spring P, which is connected with the outerend of the lever or weight arm I and with a vertical arm Q, attached tothe curved power-arm K. The spring P obviously tends to push the latterdownward, and thus to expand the triangular lever, as in Fig. 1. Whenthe levenis contracted, the spring P is necessarily stretched The barKis curved corresponding to the arc of the circle described by the outerend 3 of the lower lever-bar, and a guide-pulley may be attached toframe-bar a to support the bar K in its sliding movement.

I wish it to be understood that the arrangement of the spring P may beVaried, and I do not wish to restrict myself to the particular oneshown; also, that I do not restrict myself to the particular means orarrangement of means shown and described for contracting the triangularlever nor to the particular gear connections of the wind-wheel, and Iintend to apply my invention to any powershaft where a variable strokeis required.-

What I claim is- 1. The combination, with a power crankshaft and apump-rod, of a triangular lever composed of three bars one of which hasa fixed fulcrum at one end, the other two bars being rigidly connectedat an angle to each other and pivotally connected with the free to theouter lower angle of the lever and passing over pulleys fixed on theframe, and a hinged Vane to which said rope is also attached, so thatwhen acted on by the wind, the said inclination of the Vane contractsthe lever, and thus varies the stroke,as shown and described.

ERNEST R. NICHOLS.

Vitnesses:

GEO. S. MURPHEY, GEo. W. WASHINGTON

